Best KQED Spark Podcasts (2025)

1
Learn more about Occupy Bay Area at YBCA

Play Pause

13y ago

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Learn more about the Occupy Bay Area art exhibition at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Produced by Spark for This Week in Northern California. Original air date: July 2012.By KQED

1
Coping with Grief with Eleanor Coppola

13+ y ago

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Spark shares how Eleanor Coppola's work helps grieving parents to remember their children. Original air date: July 2004.By KQED

1
Discover the Stone Sculptures by Lu Huan

13+ y ago

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Spark discovers the exquisitely carved sculptures by Chinese American artist Lu Huan. Original air date: June 2005.By KQED

1
Find the Song in Nature with Cheryl E. Leonard

13+ y ago

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Spark finds the song inside pine cones, with composer/performer Cheryl E. Leonard. Original air date: May 2005.By KQED

1
Experience the sculptures of Sound Artist Matt Heckert

13+ y ago

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Spark checks out the rocking, rolling, reeling sculptures of sound artist Matt Heckert. Original air date: March 2005.By KQED

1
Visit the Recording Studio of Kymata

13+ y ago

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Spark visits the recording studio of bouzouki player George Mylordos and his band Kymata. Original air date: June 2004.By KQED

1
Go from First Draft to Final Rehearsals with John O'Keefe

13+ y ago

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Spark talks to John O'Keefe, a San Francisco playwright who's been on the scene for decades. Original air date: June 2004.By KQED

1
Go on a Trip with the Gospel Travelers

13+ y ago

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Spark meets the Gospel Travelers, an unlikely assortment of blues and gospel performers. Original air date: May 2004.By KQED

1
Check Out Porchlight's Storytelling Revues

13+ y ago

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Spark hits the San Francisco club scene at one of Porchlight's monthly storytelling revues. Original air date: April 2004.By KQED

1
Lend an Ear to La Familia Peña-Govea

13+ y ago

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Spark joins La Familia Peña-Govea to see how this family bands together. Original air date: April 2007.By KQED

1
Sneak into a Rehearsal at Ballet San Jose

13+ y ago

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Spark catches up with globe-trotting choreographer Flemming Flindt at Ballet San Jose Silicon Valley. Original air date: March 2004.By KQED

1
Watch Photographer Olivier Laude in Action

13+ y ago

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Spark takes a walk on the wild side with photographer Olivier Laude, as he stages his outrageous portraits. Original air date: February 2004.By KQED

1
Listen to Pauline Oliveros and Her Musical Philosophy

13+ y ago

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Spark makes acquaintance with Pauline Oliveros, the internationally renowned pioneer in electronic and improvisational music. Original air date: February 2004.By KQED

1
Meet the Artists Known as Castaneda/Reiman

13+ y ago

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Spark meets the artists known as castaneda/reiman, who live, work, and make art together. Original air date: July 2003.By KQED

1
Explore Power Dressing with Andrea Higgins

13+ y ago

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Spark explores ultimate power dressing with Andrea Higgins's series of works based on the wardrobe of American First Ladies. Original air date: June 2003.By KQED

1
Meet the Avant-Garde Songstress Amy X Neuburg

13+ y ago

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Spark listens to vocalist Amy X Neuburg and her Cello Chixtet interpreting the secret language of subways. Original air date: March 2007.By KQED

1
Reflect with Vietnamese Born Artist Thai Bui

13+ y ago

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Spark visits with Vietnamese born Thai Bui as he creates works that reflect the pressures of working as an artist in a foreign culture. Original air date: June 2005.By KQED

1
Get a Close-up Look at Anna Von Mertens' Quilts

13+ y ago

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Spark explores the method and meaning behind Anna Von Mertens's quilts that are covered with as many as 100,000 handsewn stitches. Original air date: May 2004.By KQED

1
Log on with Internet Artist Ken Goldberg

13+ y ago

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Spark meets Ken Goldberg who conducts whimsical experiments in human behavior to explore the artistic possibilities of the Web. Original air date: March 2004.By KQED

1
Check out the Growing phenomenon of Muslim Spoken Word

13+ y ago

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Spark checks out the growing phenomenon of Muslim spoken word and hip hop with Calligraphy of Thought. Original air date: February 2004.By KQED

1
Be Inspired by ODC Dance's Brenda Way

13+ y ago

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Spark talks to Brenda Way, who in the three decades since she founded ODC has directed her dancers and staff to accomplish more than they ever dreamed possible. Original air date: September 2003.By KQED

1
Visit the Studio with Victor Cartagena

14y ago

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Spark goes inside the studio with Victor Cartagena, who draws on memories of the Salvadoran Civil War to create a haunting body of work. Original air date: July 2008.By KQED

1
Climb Aboard The Ark

14y ago

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Spark discovers The Ark, a project where musicians from around the world take six days in the basement of a divinity school to compose a new piece of Jewish music. Original air date: June 2008.By KQED

1
Hit the Streets of San Jose with Phantom Galleries

14y ago

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Spark takes to the streets of San Jose to check out Phantom Galleries, part of a nationwide trend to counter the effects of urban blight by filling vacant storefronts with the work of local artists. Original air date: April 2004.By KQED

1
Head to Chile with Playwright Carlos Baron

14y ago

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Spark heads to Chile to see how Pablo Neruda influenced the work of playwright Carlos Baron. Original air date: May 2007.By KQED

1
Witness the Painstaking Delicacy of Adela Akers' Weavings

14y ago

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Spark finds out how ponies and parties play an important part in the weavings by Adela Akers. Original air date: May 2007.By KQED

1
See How Laura Splan Combines Biology with Art

14y ago

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Spark learns more about Laura Splan's fascination with biological sciences and has informed her artwork. Original air date: March 2005.By KQED

1
Remembering Painter Nathan Oliveira

14y ago

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Spark remembers Nathan Oliveira and his lifelong fascination with the painted surface. Original air date: February 2005.By KQED

1
Go Back in Time to for the Opening of Asian Art Museum

14y ago

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Spark visits the Asian Art Museum for their opening gala in 2003. Original air date: March 2003.By KQED

1
Meet Iranian-American Artist Taraneh Hemami

14y ago

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Spark spends time with Taraneh Hemami as she helps to preserve the memories of Iranian-Americans. Original air date: July 2006.By KQED

1
Get Permission to Stare with Jim Campbell's Art

14y ago

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Spark follows the development of Jim Campbell's series of works, which focuses on people with physical disabilities. Original air date: May 2003.By KQED

1
Get a Tour the Kramlich's Private Art Collection

14y ago

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Spark gets an inside look at the private collection of film- and video-based art in the home of the Kramlichs. Original air date: April 2003.By KQED

1
See How Kaleid is Revitalizing San Jose's Downtown Area

14y ago

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Spark visits San Jose's gallery, Kaleid, and learns about the art scene there. Original air date: June 2007.By KQED

1
Learn About the Art Business with Charles Linder

14y ago

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Spark gets an an insider's perspective on the art business with artist Charles Linder, who formerly owned Lincart gallery. Original air date: September 2003.By KQED

1
Travel the Silk Road with Ballet Afsaneh

14+ y ago

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Spark experiences the dance traditions of Central Asia come alive when Ballet Afsaneh takes the stage. Original air date: July 2007.By KQED

1
Learn More About Shailja Patel's Migritude

14+ y ago

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Visit Kenyan-born Indian American Shailja Patel as she works on her one-woman show, "Migritude." Original air date: March 2007.By KQED

1
Visit the Studio of Legendary Sound Duo Matmos

14+ y ago

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Find out how sound duo Matmos create their unique sound environments -- you may be surprised. Original air date: May 2006.By KQED

1
See How Joe Mangrum Juxtaposes Nature with Technology

14+ y ago

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See how natural found objects are juxtaposed with pieces of technology in Joe Mangrum's design sculptures. Original air date: July 2006.By KQED

1
Artists' Interpretations of the Seder Plate

14+ y ago

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Check out the Contemporary Jewish Museum and their invitational exhibition showcasing artists' interpretations of the seder plate. Original air date: April 2009.By KQED

1
Djerassi Resident Artists Program

14+ y ago

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Meet artists in the Djerassi Resident Artists Program who were displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Original air date: March 2006.By KQED

1
Spark: de Young Museum: Web Extra

14+ y ago

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This Web extra discusses how the art is arranged at the de Young Museum. Original release: March 2006.By KQED

1
Spark: de Young Museum

14+ y ago

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Spark visits the de Young Museum when it re-opened its doors in 2005. And we meet artist Sharon Virtue. Original air date: March 2006.By KQED

1
Spark: Catherine Wagner

14+ y ago

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View Catherine Wagner's stark, pristine images presenting new perspectives on science, nature and material culture. Original air date: January 2005.By KQED

1
Spark: Ben Wood

14+ y ago

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Go on a photo shoot with video artist Ben Wood to retrieve a centuries-old mural in the Mission Dolores. Original air date: January 2005.By KQED

1
Spark: Andrew Kleindolph

14+ y ago

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Enter the world of electronic sculpture artist Andrew Kleindolph who constructs machines that defy logic or function. Original air date: April 2006.By KQED

1
Spark: Walter Savage

14+ y ago

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Get a front row seat at Yoshi's Jazz House to see jazz bassist Walter Savage. Original air date: August 2006.By KQED

1
Spark: Mitra Fabian

14+ y ago

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See how sculptor Mitra Fabian explores the abnormal using mundane materials. Original air date: July 2007.By KQED

1
Spark: Larry Reed from Shadowlight

14+ y ago

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Catch master shadow puppeteer Larry Reed behind-the-scenes of a traditional Balinese tale in which he plays 40 different characters. Original air date: January 2004.By KQED

1
Spark: Caleb Duarte

14+ y ago

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Head to the beach with Caleb Duarte as he gathers materials for a solo show in San Francisco's Jack Fischer Gallery. Original air date: April 2007.By KQED

1
Spark: Jesus Aguilar

14+ y ago

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Explore language through technology with conceptual video artist Jesus Aguilar. Original air date: May 2007.By KQED